Rock Island daily Argus., 1887-12-24

those two little children up stairs the icy
river would have soon closed her book of sor-
row.
She reached her room. The children were
fast asleep, and she lighted the lamp and sat |
down by the little stove.
''If we starve,n she said, II cannot work .
tonight
By and by mechanically she went about /
and put the little room TO rights, and hung |
the childreu's worn clothing over the chair
back, and took the meat for the next days |
dinner and supper from its bag. The vege-
tables lay upon the table, with the apples
These she wiped softly and then sat down
again, looking at them in a dream. Sud
denly she gave nervous little laugh, saying:
| 81 will 1t will amuse them at any rate"
Then she took a knife and piece of kind
| ling and in little while cut it III small
sticks, and these she counted until she had
| the number she needed, and set TO work
She found the two potatoes adapted to her
plan, which was to make horses Of them by
sticking four legs, a tail and two ears into
them Treated the same way the two red
onions made rather awkward but pretty
colored cows, and the tlIrnips became a tiger
and the carrot an alligator.
These made quite little menagerie when
set upon the table in position to attract the
children's attention the first thing in the
morning, and red apple was thrust into
each well darned stocking and they were hung
upon the board which served for a maHtel-
piece
Thus out Of nothing mother love devised
bit of Christmas for her little ones, and when
this was done, somehow her heart was
lighter and she blessed God for the inspira-
ton and that she had her children and
health, and thanked him while she lay down
beside the two pretty if pale children.
The noise of drums, trumpets and chill
drens shouts in streets and hall walked the
children almost before daylight, and they
began to ask each other and their mother
what it was all about, and she told them that
it was Christmas and lying then for once
idle during the daylight hours she told them
all the sweet story and then they began to
wonder if Santa Claus had been to them, and
they bounced out Of bed to see,
The apples were very rare nnd beautiful to
them, but the menagerie of wonderful ami
mals surpassed anything they ever dreamed
Of, and as the mother told them:
"You see, dears they are nicer than any
wooden toy animals could be, for We can
play that they are real truly animals and
We can kill them and dress them and cut
them all up into little bits and cook them by
and by JUST as the butchers do"
"Oh, yesr' said Ruthie in ecstasy
81 don't want my ollumgater cut mp de
clared Robbie, stoutly. He was pacified, and
the children played contentedly all the morn
ing with their animals, though It required the
constant service of mamma to replace broken
legs, horns and tails and the children did
) smell rather strong Of onions; still they We're
happy and ler heart lghtened Eut when
the time carle for the final part OF their play
Robbie would not allow single one Of hi
precious 'ammulsn to be sacrificed and q
last he became so obstreperous that Iii
mother was obliged topunish him BY shutting
him into a good sized closet which hat
always stood between the chimney and thl
gable window. Robbie did not enjoy his i'm
prisOnment and kicked and cried until HI
made the very rafters ring, but suddenly
after a rather more violent outbreak thar
usual there was a silence, and his mothel
waited while, surprised at this new freak
and then she opened the door and looked In
There on the floor sat Robbie, with piect
Of the dashboard lying fat and disclosing
hole within which was a tin box. This h
was trying to pull out but 1t seemed TOT
heavy for him to move, and soon Mrs. Hicl1
had it out and was examining it. When sh;
had wiped off the dust she found paintet
upon it in white letters "Owen Hardcastle.'
1t needed no more to take every bit o.
strength she had and make her sink whitt
and suffocating on the chair. This was hel
grandfather's name! What if this box con
tained the money he was supposed to havt
hidden somewherel 1t was heavy enough
A moments reflection convinced her that, a
she was the only living member of all tht
family, this box and its contents were hers
and SO with a knife and piece of wood SHIT
pried it open and found even as she hat
hoped. The box was full of gold, and ais
contained several valuable diamonds, so tina
this woman, who had the night before beer
on the verge Of despair from poverty, anC
who had had to make travesty of hel
Is meager dinner to give her fatherless babies
. little of the joy that Christmas brings, wa!
% lifted above want again.
u But, though she had found this treasure
ie and she knew it was her own in all right, sh,
l. was too sensible little woman to bruit th'
Is news about, and SO they sat down to theil
II Christmas dinner of soup made out of
S whole menagerie, and up to this day, though
a. she lives in different way now, the lawyer
is 4, never got wind of her inheritance nor sharr
u in it Robbie and Ruthie have pretty toys
~ but probably none of them have ever beer
ot quite as dear to their little hearts as th'
70 strange animals their mothers brealin;
% heart wrought out for their pleasure.